Alice In Chains News: Band working on new album, Jerry Cantrell involved in Sea-Tac Airport Initiative and to be honored by MusicCares MAP Fund Benefit

Jerry Cantrell revealed that Alice In Chains is working on a new album they hope to have out befor the end of 2012.

Alice in Chains 2009 album ‘Black Gives Way to Blue’ was the bands first album in 16 years and first without late vocalist Layne Staley, whose memory served as the inspiration for the last album. The band began working on new material as far back as last summer, but their progress was interupted when Cantrell had to undergo shoulder surgery.

Cantrell has since recovered and told Rolling Stone of the new album, “It’s time to get to work and the material is really interesting, the body of work that we’ve done. It’ll be as different as any one of our records is to any other, and it’ll also be just as recognizable. It’s an Alice record, for sure.”

Cantrell predicts that the album will be out in late 2012 or early 2013 at the latest but says the band won’t rush the album to meet a deadline. “We’ve been very lucky to be able to kind of do things at our own pace for our entire career. And this is no exception.”

Cantrell will be honored with the Stevie Ray Vaughan award at the MusiCares MAP Fund Benefit later this month for his continued contributions to help musicians who struggle with addiction. “Everybody’s human, everybody has flaws, everybody falls down. It’s just a fucking fact of life,” said Cantrell. “A lot of people stand and get the fuck back up after falling. Some people don’t get that chance. My band’s been a harsh example of that – what happens when you don’t deal with it.”

The official lineup for the May 31 charity event will feature performances from Duff McKagan, Billy Idol, Heart and Screaming Trees/Queens of the Stone Age singer-guitarist Mark Lanegan, in addition to Alice In Chains.

The event takes place at Los Angeles’ Club Nokia and has general admission balcony tickets available for $55, while VIP floor seats will fetch $1,250 a pop. All proceeds from the benefit dinner and concert will go to the MusiCares MAP fund.

The Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in the Pacific Northwest is making effective use of the region’s rich musical history, both past and current. The airport has launched a new campaign, called The Sea-Tac Airport Music Initiative, Experience the City of Music, to feature the sights and sounds of the area, increasing the visibility of the local talent in the busy, heavily-traveled airport. Alice in Chains guitarist Jerry Cantrell is just one of the many artists involved in the initiative.

Cantrell recorded an overhead safety and information announcement about where any of the 32 million people who pass through Sea-Tac can take a smoke break. Cantrell’s message lets passengers and travelers know the airport’s no-smoking policy, with a little dose of humor. He says, “This is Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains reminding you that smoking is allowed on the lower drive outside the building and only in designated areas…Bummer, dude.”

Pearl Jam‘s Eddie Vedder is also involved in the campaign.

“Seattle is known around the world for its music culture, so it’s great to see this identity embraced and showcased to all the travelers going through the airport,” said Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn. “Jet City, meet Music City.”